Olive Branch
by sedlakova
Summary: just a quick 3parter about what I wished had happened on Rory’s 21st birthday... Logan makes a lifechanging phone call... roganlorelai
1. An Olive Branch?

A/N: This is just a quick one shot of what I wished had happened on Rory's 21st birthday…

Disclaimer: Don't own anything, of course.

Logan watched Rory, who usually slept peacefully curled beside him, tossing and turning in her sleep. The night before her 21st birthday. She had cried herself to sleep, after telling him about her special traditional birthday phone call with her mom, as well as their plans to go to Atlantic City. He had tried to hold her, to reassure her, but nothing worked. Knowing the bond between mother and daughter, Logan pulled out his phone, thinking he must be a masochist, and dialed the number he'd programmed into his phone in case of emergencies. _Well, this must count as one, right? _he thought.

After only one ring, someone answered. "Baby girl?" Lorelai answered hoarsely, sounding wide awake.

Logan instantly knew he was doing the right thing. It was clear that they both were absolutely lost without the other, both unable to sleep on a night that meant so much to both of them.

"Lorelai, it's Logan," he said, holding his breath.

"Is Rory ok? In the hospital? Oh my God, what happened?"

"No, no, nothing like that, I swear," he reassured her.

"Then this better be good."

"Call her, Lorelai. It's tearing her up inside that the two of you aren't having your usual birthday tradition."

"Where the hell do you get off, telling me what to do concerning my daughter? It's your fault she dropped out of school, it's your fault we're like this in the first place," she ranted.

He took a deep breath, hoping that he wasn't ruining any chance of mending the rift. "That argument is for another time, right now your daughter needs her mother. She cried herself to sleep tonight, and I know she's not sleeping well, since she's tossing and turning. Her pillow's soaked. And I think she might have a fever, but I know she's not sick. Now if that's not enough reason to call her, I don't know what is." _Maybe telling her that he was with Rory, while she was sleeping, wasn't the best idea. Oh well._

The line was silent for what seemed like an eternity, and then he heard it -- sniffles, then sobs.

"Um, Lorelai?"

"Yeah?" she sniffed.

"Will you call her, please? Please?" Logan was surprised at himself, at the words coming out of his mouth unbidden. He had never begged for anything, never had to. "She's too afraid to call you, afraid you're so disappointed in her. Please be the one to make the first move.She needs you."

Again, he heard nothing but heart-wrenching cries. After a couple minutes, he could barely make out the whispered words, "Okay, thank you."

Closing his phone, he sat and waited for Rory's phone to ring. And sure enough, after what he considered to be Lorelai's time to compose herself, Rory's phone began to ring.

She clutched it like a lifeline, and whispered, "Mom?"

"Happy birthday, little girl."

Logan listened to Rory's half of the conversation, smiling, hoping that this was the olive branch needed to put these crazy women back together. _How could they not see that they weren't themselves without the other?_

"Hey."

" Really? Feels slow."

"I think it's pretty good."

"Yeah, Mom, I can do that." And she turned to him, eyes sparkling like they hadn't in weeks. "She wants me to put her on speakerphone. Don't be frightened, okay, it gets kind of graphic."

He just grinned back at her, happy to see her happy again.And Lorelai allowing him to be included in their tradition, well, that was just icing on the birthday cake.

"Any complaints?"

" I'd like that whole humidity thing to go away."

" All right. I'll work on that."

"So do I look older?"

"Oh, yeah. You walk into Denny's before 5, you've got yourself a discount."

" Good deal."

" So you know what I think?"

" What?"

" I think you're a great, cool kid, and the best friend a girl could have."

" Right back at ya."

And then the sobs started for real, both women crying with the joy of being reunited, the sadness of so much wasted time, and the knowledge that this time, nothing would separate them ever again. Logan sat there, wistfully thinking about how it must be to have that kind of relationship with a parent. He had been Rory's rock throughout this period, the one person who believed that she'd figure out on her own that she belonged at Yale. He'd had people telling him what to do his whole life; he wasn't about to do that to someone else. But he knew he had been a poor substitute for Lorelai.

He came back to the present, clearly having missed something he'd rather not have heard anyway, from the disgusted tone of the giggles coming from the happy woman next to him, as well as through the phone line.

"And I was screaming and swearing and being surrounded as I was by a hundred prominent doctors, I just assumed there was an actual use for the cup of ice chips they gave me."

" There wasn't."

" But pelting the nurses sure was fun."

" I love you, Mom."

" Shh. I'm getting to the part where he sees your head. So there I was..."

Logan motioned to Rory that he was leaving, but that he'd be back soon. Partially because he didn't think hearing about the "Miracle of Life" firsthand was fun, but partly to give the women their together time. He had wanted to be the one who gave them a push, but not be visibly involved. He grabbed his phone and made a couple of calls, and came back to the room smiling, as he heard,

"So there you have it, kiddo. You caused me unspeakable amounts of pain, but since then have given me more moments of happiness than I ever thought possible. I love you, and I am so, so proud of you, and everything you do. Goodnight, baby."

"Goodnight, Mom. I love you."

The look on Rory's face said it all. Those depth-less blue eyes were shining, and she looked happier than he'd ever seen her. And at that moment, he realized that he would do anything to keep her just like that. That he would never hurt her. That he loved her.

And as she was holding him as though she'd never let him go, he smiled into her hair, thinking about the envelope that would be delivered to Lorelai's house in the morning, courtesy of his earlier calls.

_Lorelai,_

_Thank you. And before you call me to complain about the cost, don't. Just take Rory, and don't tell her it's from me. I don't know, tell her you'd been saving up for something special for her. Have fun._

_Logan_


	2. So, Good Talk

A/N: This is a follow-up oneshot to **Olive Branch, **in which Lorelai expresses her thanks to Logan for reuniting her with Rory.

* * *

His cell rang around midnight, and looking at the unfamiliar number, Logan recognized the area code. Atlantic City. _Ace misses me, _he thought to himself. He sure as hell missed her, even though it was only for one night, and grinned broadly as he answered, "Hey, Ace!" but to his surprise, it wasn't her.

"Logan, it's Lorelai. Sorry to disappoint."

"No, I, uh, hi." _So this is where his Yale education has brought him. He can't string a sentence together in front of his girl's mom, when he'd had no problems the previous evening._ "Are you two having fun?"

"Of course, but I'll let Rory fill you in when she gets back. Don't want to steal her thunder. That's not the reason I'm calling, though. And before you interrupt, let me just say I've written down some things I want to say to you, and I assure you, it's better to just let me get all this out while she's sleeping. Okay?"

"Okay," he responded unsurely, wondering if this was going to be a positive or negative Gilmore ramble.

"First off, as you must know from Rory, I hate high society. I hate the people, I hate the restraints, I just hate it. Watching Rory fit into your world, her grandparents' world, made me sick to my stomach. The fucking DAR, Logan. Insipid, vapid women who have nothing better to do with their time. And my baby joined them. But talking with her today, I've realized that she might occasionally dress like one of them, but she's not. The Borg hasn't taken her, and it won't. She's not one of them. And I think, from your phone call last night, or should I say this morning, that you're not one of them either. You walk the walk, but Rory told me you're fighting your future, your family, and doing all sorts of crazy things, and I can't help but be reminded of myself a little younger than you are now."

"Really?" he asked, shocked. Rory had commented on the resemblance of his attitude to her mother's, but he'd never really believed her. Lorelai was strong. She left society, had a great life, an amazing daughter, and never looked back. _That sure as hell wasn't him. Was it?_

"Kid, you've got moxy, that's for damn sure, and I think you're in a much better place to strike out on your own than I was at 16. Because you've got the education, you're unafraid, and you are the heir, but hey, if it doesn't go to you, who else would your dad have running his company? That's the ace up your sleeve, pun absolutely intended. He needs you a lot more than you need him.

And because I've realized that you've got heart, contrary to what I had thought before yesterday. You're the only person who has truly stood by Rory, who is allowing her to figure out for herself that she belongs at school, without pushing her in any direction at all. Thank you for doing what I couldn't do, Logan. I mean that."

"I just, I've felt pushed my whole life, Lorelai. There's no way in hell I'd do that to someone I loved." _Oh shit. Cover it! _"Even though I disagree with what she's doing."

Luckily, she either glossed over his declaration, or missed it in her attempts to organize her scraps of paper. He heard her take a deep breath.

"So about your call yesterday... From the bottom of my heart, I thank you. For recognizing what we needed to do. For making me make the first move. You know, she gets her stubbornness from me."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that," he said with a laugh, truly smiling for the first time since picking up the phone.

"And last but not least, I was going to ask what your feelings were for Rory, but based on last night, and your little slip-up a minute ago, I'm guessing you love her. Of course you do, everyone does. Except the Munsters. So I'm gonna ask you to just tell her. I think she needs to hear it."

"I know."

"So."

"So."

"Good talk."

"Yeah. Goodnight, Lorelai."

"Night, Logan."

* * *

_Sorry, I didn't think this would be a two-parter when I started, but I wanted Lorelai's reaction, and acceptance of Logan, to be clear._


	3. The Return of Ace

A/N: Ok, this is the absolute last part of this ficlet, I promise! This one just wouldn't leave me alone, especially after **-19MikaelA87-**'s review. This was only my second GG fic, and I was a bit nervous about posting it. But your reviews pushed me to bring the idea to completion, so thank you for reading and reviewing :)

* * *

Sitting at a coffeehouse in Hartford, Logan impatiently checked his phone again for any messages or missed calls. Of course, there were none since he'd had his phone on the table for the past hour and a half. Sad. The mighty Logan Huntzberger waiting for a girl to call him, willing his phone to ring. Not just any girl, mind you, but still… Good thing he had the new Perez-Reverte to read. If only he could focus… He was waiting for Rory to call, to let him know she'd arrived back from her trip to Atlantic City with Lorelai. He didn't think she'd be upset, but he wanted to be nearby just in case. Hence the coffeehouse in Hartford, near her grandparents' house. 

He tried to focus on the same paragraph he'd already read several times, but to no avail. Luckily his phone began ringing right as he was contemplating throwing the book across the café.

"Hey, Ace," he said, trying not to sound too eager, but failing miserably, or so he thought.

"Logan, hey, I'm back. Do you have some time this afternoon, I really need to talk to you," Rory said. Well, she didn't sound upset, that was good.

"Yeah, I'm in Hartford, I can be there in 10 minutes. Sound good?"

"Yeah, see ya soon!" she chirped, and at that he had to be surprised. She hadn't sounded chirpy in a long time.

As soon as he arrived at the poolhouse, he looked in the window and was stunned to see her intently reading a book. He hadn't seen her with her nose in a book in weeks. With her DAR work and community service hours, she hadn't had much free time. In the past, though, that wouldn't have stopped her. One of the things that had drawn him to her so long ago was her love of books. His Ace, the old Ace, read like a fiend. Hell, she sniffed library books, for Chrissakes. Logan had missed seeing her as focused as she was right then. She was biting her lip, with her long legs curled under her on the couch, and looked peaceful yet determined. That was the girl he had fallen for. _Was her time with Lorelai the kick she'd needed so desperately?_

He took a deep breath and knocked. The smile that lit up her face was serene, happy, as she got up to open the door. The minute he walked in, she hugged him tightly and dragged him to the couch with a spring in her step. But still she hadn't spoken.

"So, Ace, you're killin' me here. How was it?"

"Oh, well, I'm surprised you haven't heard already from my mom," she said, with a mischievous glint in her eye.

"What do you mean?" _Oh, I'm so not good at playing dumb with her!_

"What do I mean? Well, how about the two phone calls between you and my mom in less than 24 hours? Hmmmm? And how about the fact that we stayed in the penthouse suite at the Trump Marina Hotel? And that we flew first class? C'mon, Logan, there's no way my mom could've afforded that. I know you were involved!"

Logan was vividly reminded of that fateful day when she'd cornered him and confronted him with the information she'd gathered on the LDB. She missed nothing. And he should've realized that an open talk between Rory and her mom would be just that. Open_. After all, he hadn't asked Lorelai to keep it a secret, but it had been implied, hadn't it?_

"I should've known not to keep a secret from you, my super sharp ace reporter," he replied, smirking. "Ok, I give. Yeah, I called your mom the night before last. I'd told myself a thousand times that I wouldn't push you into anything—Yale, talking to your mom, leaving 'all this,'" he gestured around the poolhouse. Anything. I'm not gonna apologize, though. My heart broke watching you that night. I couldn't stand seeing you in so much pain. And I…" he trailed off as she lifted her finger to his lips to quiet him. She then replaced her finger with her lips, and kissed him sweetly.

"Thank you, Logan, for everything. For being there. For understanding that mom and I need each other. It's a weird, symbiotic relationship, I know, and I feel more alive now that things are better with her."

"So, things are better? Tell me what happened!" He was dying to know, and Rory laughed out loud at his impatience. _Dammit, he just wanted to know if everything worked out!_

"Well, after some uncomfortable seconds at the airport, we cracked. We fell on each other, hugging and crying on the floor—oh, the security footage must be really entertaining. So on the plane ride, we started updating each other on our lives. Would you believe my mom got a dog? My mom? She can't keep a hamster alive. Oh, and the turtle, let's not even get into that. Oh and my baby chick for a school project..." Rory was rambling, but she was so cute when she was excited!

"So, we talked, played 21 and roulette to say we did it, but then we just went back to the room, hit the minibar, and kept talking all night. Best birthday ever."

"So you're good?" Logan asked gently.

"Yeah, we're good. Very good." She shot a goofy grin at him. "In fact, I'm moving my stuff to Stars Hollow tomorrow."

"Really? That's... wow! I'm happy for you, Ace. I never want to see you crying yourself to sleep again. I want you to be this happy all the time. Because that's how happy you make me. I've never cared about anyone's happiness this much, not even my own. You make me more studious, more responsible, you make me a stronger person. A better person. And I love you for it." _There it was, out there. No taking it back. Breathe. It wasn't as scary as he'd thought it would be._

"I love you too, Huntzberger, but you knew that already," she whispered into his neck as he pulled her to him and held her tightly. He never wanted to let her go. After several minutes, he slowly opened his eyes and glanced over her shoulder, his gaze landing on the book she'd been reading.

He leaned back, looking into her shining blue eyes, to make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. Hoarsely, he asked, unable to believe it, "The Yale class catalogue, Ace?"

Still clutching his shirt, she smiled into him again. "Yeah, I was thinking about returning for the spring semester. And there are so many cool classes I want to take! Like there's one called "Deconstructing the Byronic hero", and I really want to take the class on 18th Century French Prose, and that class is only taught once every 2 years, so this is my chance, and I'm so excited!!!" she gushed. Her eyes were sparkling, and he knew for sure that his Ace was definitely back. _Who else could be that thrilled about school?_

He picked her up and swung her around the living room, damn near giddy. "Well, then, Ace, in that case, I've got a proposition for you. My apartment in New Haven is huge, as you know, and I hate being apart from you, even for a short time. Move in with me next semester?"

She jumped in his arms, wrapped her legs around his waist, and kissed him so deeply that his lungs burned, but he didn't care.

"Can I take that as a yes?" he rasped, trying to catch his breath and keep his balance at the same time.

"Yes!" she grinned, as they fell in a heap on the floor, laughing.

_Yep, his Ace was back!_


End file.
